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(1915-2016)
I have chosen you; you have not chosen Me.
Sister Jean Edward, baptized Violet Ellen Selcke, was born on March 6, 1915, in Chicago. She was the fourth of six children born to Edward and Mary (Heffernan) Selcke. Her three older brothers were Edward, Lawrence and Raymond. Six years after Violet’s birth, Lucile and Margaret were born.
In her autobiography, Sister Jean Edward wrote:
It was great fun having two sisters. We spent enjoyable time together visiting Garfield Park Conservatory, Riverview Park, the Chicago Civic Opera House and the Art Institute. Swimming and picnics were our favorites. Even though we spent time doing many pleasant things, my parents provided time for us to have piano lessons.
Read more about Sister Jean Edward (pdf)
Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, Michigan, 49221.
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(1922-2016)
Sister Maris Stella Beaufait, the seventh child of Joseph E. and Matilda Ida Louise (Couchez) Beaufait, was born on October 24, 1922, in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.
She was baptized Mary Jane in honor of her paternal grandmother, Mary Jane Lennon. In her autobiography, Sister Maris Stella wrote:
My mother and father both came from farming families. My father was the fifth generation of Beaufaits in the Detroit area. Louis Beaufait, my great, great, great grandfather, was born in France in 1733 and came to Detroit in 1761. He played an important part in the early history of the city. His son, Louis, who was a colonel in the War of 1812, was the owner of a farm which bordered the Detroit River and extended back across Gratiot Road. Beaufait Avenue in Detroit was a part of what was his farm.
My mother was raised on a farm in St. Clair Shores at [what is now] Thirteen Mile Road and Harper. Mother came from a large family, six boys and six girls. Only one of my uncles married and he late in life. They all worked on the farm and my Aunt Margaret kept house for them.
Read more about Sister Maris Stella (pdf)
(1928-2016)
Sister Barbara Wetterer, known also as Sister Marie Giles, was born on July 7, 1928, in Chicago. She was the second of three children born to Giles and Mildred (Thiel) Wetterer. Her older sister Mary was born in 1924. Barbara and her twin brother Giles were born four years later.
In her autobiography, Sister Barbara described her family’s gradual migration to Florida. She wrote:
Ferdinand J. Wetterer, my fraternal grandfather, was the owner of the Germania Brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio. After the brewery was sold in the days of prohibition, my father moved to Chicago where he became the vice president of his uncle’s rivet manufacturing company in Chicago. The three of us were born in Chicago and lived in Rogers Park until after the death of our father from cancer in 1934. My grandparents had moved to Miami Beach, Florida, and when my brother was found to be suffering from asthma, we also migrated to Miami Beach, Florida, to see if the salt-water would help my brother.
We all attended and graduated from St. Patrick School in Miami Beach which was very different during WWII. The government had taken over all the hotels and 25,000 military were stationed there. A training school for officers was also located there.
Read more about Sister Barbara (pdf)
Sister Alice Wolski, formerly known as Sister Walter Marie, was born August 26, 1922, in Detroit. She was the fourth of six children born to Walter and Sophie (Flens) Wolski. In her autobiography, she wrote the following about her family and education.
I grew up during the Depression and I know that my parents had to struggle to keep food on the table and clothes on our backs. When I was born my parents had already lost a child and the two youngest born to our family did not live beyond the age of two. I remember the sadness in our home at the time of their deaths, but I always remember my parents as people of great faith and tremendous love.
My early education took place at Holy Name School in Detroit. I had Adrian Dominican Sisters as my teachers throughout elementary school. When it came time to choose a high school, it had to be East Commerce High School on the east side of Detroit. During my senior year, I decided that God was calling me. I kept in touch with the sisters at Holy Name. A couple of the sisters thought that God didn’t give vocations to girls in “public schools,” but Mother Gerald thought otherwise.
Read more about Sister Alice (pdf)
Our Adrian Dominican cemetery with its circular headstones is a beautiful place of rest for women who gave their lives in service to God — and a peaceful place for contemplation and remembrance.
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